The gossip:
Several Obama transition advisers are strongly advocating Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) for secretary of state, a move that would create the ultimate "Team of Rivals" Cabinet, according to officials involved in the discussions
I'm with Steve Benen on this:
...I'm also a little surprised Hillary Clinton would even want the job (if she wants the job). Right now, she has one of the safest seats in the Senate, and I expected her to have a leading role in the upcoming healthcare debate. Indeed, were she to give up her seat, it's unlikely she'd get it back.
Here's another grim reality to consider: Clinton's odds of ever becoming president are grim. There are cases of candidates that lost primaries went on to become president -- Reagan's failed 1976 bid springs to mind -- but unless Obama's presidency is a disaster, Clinton won't compete for the job until 2016, when the entire political spectrum likely will have changed.
Right now, Clinton has the chance to become a mainstay in the Senate, and a powerful lawmaker for as long as she wants. Does she give that up to serve in the Obama administration? With bleak job prospects afterwards? Then again, she might just want to be Secretary of State.
Then again, this rumor could be bogus.
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